


Ik was meteen ondersteboven.

by forabeatofadrum (maanorchidee)



Category: Glee
Genre: M/M, Misunderstandings, Nederlands | Dutch, Weekly Challenge: Coffee Shop Klaine, todaydreambelieversfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-15
Updated: 2017-01-15
Packaged: 2018-09-17 17:22:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9335024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maanorchidee/pseuds/forabeatofadrum
Summary: “you and your friend always sit at the table and gossip in [insert language here], which happens to be a language i’m currently learning. i’ve been eavesdropping to try and improve my listening comprehension and oh my god are you actually talking about how hot i am??” and Blaine speaking Dutch, because it’s an AU I’ve never seen before.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I advice using Google Translate while reading this, but I will put the English translations in the end note. Title from the song Hoe (which must look really weird if you don't speak Dutch, but no worries, it means "how" not "whore"). 
> 
> Also rebloggable from tumblr!
> 
> Since this was written on her birthday: happy birthday, Naya Rivera.

Santana speaks Spanish, which isn’t a surprise. A lot of people speak a lot of languages, especially in a city like New York.

So when a professor suggests him to learn an extra language, Kurt’s in. Many expected him to pick French, because he already knows some of it, but he chooses the language no one he knows uses: Dutch.

Or as the Dutch call it: _Nederlands._

And Kurt is overly committed. He studies it whenever he has the time. He checks Duolingo on the subway. During commercials, he revises his vocabulary, and if there aren’t many customers in the coffee shop, he is reading Dutch children’s books.

 

* * *

 

 

“Are you still reading that picture book?” Santana rolls her eyes. It’s a slow day. That happens when you choose to work in a small coffee shop, instead of in Starbucks.

“It’s not a picture book, Santana,” Kurt snaps, “It’s just a children’s book. _Een kinderboek_ , if I may say.”

“What if Bowtie-Suspender-Pants shows up again and he sees you reading Pluk van de Petteflet? What happens then? After your awkward encounter you cannot afford another one-” 

“I couldn’t help it I put too much cinnamon in his coffee, I was distracted!”

“By his beauty!”

Santana is right, though. Blaine, or Bowtie-Suspender-Pants, is a regular. This coffee shop doesn’t have many regulars, since it’s so small, but the regulars they do have are very loyal.

Blaine never says much. He orders and then sits down at his usual table, or at the small table outside. He always reads a book or does homework.

And Kurt might have a little crush on him.

He’s never had the courage to write down his number on his cup.

 

* * *

 

 

Blaine is back, but to Kurt’s dismay, there’s another man with him. He’s tall, he’s hunky, he’s absolutely stunning. And he likes the iced mocha Blaine ordered for him.

“Ouch,” Santana says. Her shift is over, so she has to leave Kurt in his misery.

And Kurt is in misery. Of course, of fucking course, Blaine has a boyfriend. 

Sulking, he turns away.

But then he hears Blaine speak. 

That isn’t an unusual thing, but he’s never heard Blaine speak in a different language. To Kurt’s surprise, he realises it’s Dutch.

“ _... zo blij dat je nog eens langs komt_.”

“ _Blaine, klein broertje, je denkt toch niet dat ik je nooit zou bezoeken. Je woont in New York_!” the man laughs. 

“ _Waarschijnlijk ben je er alleen om New York te ontdekken zonder vet veel te betalen voor een hotel_ ,” Blaine grumbles.

“That’s rude, Blaine,” the man says mockingly, “ _Onze ouders hebben ons niet zo opgevoed._ ” 

“ _S_ hut up, _hou je bek dicht_.”

Blaine and the man talk a little bit more. Every now and then, Kurt can understand bits and pieces, but it’s pretty clear that Blaine and his boyfriend are fluent speakers, and Kurt is far from fluent.

Every now and then, English slips through, but they mostly speak Dutch. After an hour and another cup of coffee, they leave. 

Kurt watches them go.

 

* * *

 

 

The next day, Blaine’s back.

And so is the man.

Blaine orders a coffee and an iced mocha and they sit down. They start to talk again. This time it’s all Dutch.

Kurt has his Pluk en de Petteflet book with him, but he decides not to read it in front of them. Santana was right, they don’t need to see Kurt with that.

 

* * *

 

 

The day after that, Santana is bitching about dance classes. “And to make everyone worse, my shift today was hell. It’s never rush hour at our coffee shop- that’s why I chose to work there!”

“Good thing I had class then,” Kurt says.

“At least Bowtie-Suspender-Pants got the memo and he only ordered a simple black coffee and a iced mocha. Why did he order a simple black coffee, though?”

“Blaine was there?” Kurt looks up from his Dutch dictionary. The man must’ve been there too, because Blaine only orders iced mocha for his boyfriend.

“Yeah, he asked about you, but you weren’t working,” Santana rolls her eyes, “So he got his drinks and he started talking to that other dude in this weird language.”

“He asked about me?”

“Unfortunately.”

 

* * *

 

 

Three days later, Kurt is back in the coffee shop. He’s tyding up a couple of the coffee machines.

And he might be waiting for Blaine to show up, hopefully without The Boyfriend.

Blaine does show up, but The Boyfriend is with him. Kurt already prepares the coffee and the iced mocha. 

“You’re a lifesaver,” Blaine says when he notices, “He’s kind of impatient.” He nods towards The Boyfriend. Kurt plasters a smile on his face.

Kurt watches him go and the Dutch language fills the room. 

“ _Dus dat is hem?_ ” The Boyfriend asks, looking amused.

“ _Ja, dat is hem. Waag het niet om iets stoms te doen-_ ” “ _Wat? Zoals de andere werknemers lastigvallen met vragen over je crush? Dat ene meisje was_ not in the mood. _Ik had medelijden met haar._ ”

Blaine rolls his eyes. 

Kurt wonders if it’s a relationship based on mutual teasing. Kurt tries to turn away, but it’s a slow day and he can hear Blaine and The Boyfriend loud and clear. He tries to ignore them, but he’s bored, and The Boyfriend is very loud.

After a couple of minutes, Kurt gives up.

And you know, maybe he should listen.

For, uhm, listening comprehension. 

Kurt has a test coming up, so eavesdropping won’t hurt that much. Kurt won’t be able to fully understand it. He’s heard them talking about family, but he doesn’t know which family. 

He can understand quite a lot, since his vocabulary is broad for a student, but it’s never enough to make sense of Blaine and The Boyfriend’s conversations. So it shouldn’t hurt.

They won’t even notice. Kurt pulls out his phone and pretends to play a game.

“ _Hij ziet er verveeld uit_ ,” Kurt hears The Boyfriend. Apparently, The Boyfriend is bored. “ _Misschien is dit de kans om met hem te praten._ ”

“ _Ik weet het niet..._ ”

“ _Blaine, ben niet zo pessimistisch. Je vindt hem overduidelijk lekker._ ”

Kurt looks up when he hears Blaine choking on his coffee. “Oh my God,” Blaine buries his head in his hands.

“ _Wat? Sommigen zeggen dat nog steeds_.”

“ _Het is ordinair!_ ” Blaine yells out, “And he _... hij verdient beter._ ” Kurt wonders who deserves better.

Blaine turns around- only to turn back immediately. “ _Oh god, hij kijkt!_ ” And Kurt is taken aback. Blaine clearly said “He’s looking!”

He can’t be talking about Kurt, right?

But The Boyfriend looks at Kurt too. Their eyes meet, and The Boyfriend smiles. 

“ _Mijn broertje denkt dat je heel knap bent!_ ” he yells. 

Wait.

Wait a second?

Did he just say-

Blaine yelps loudly. “Cooper!”

“ _Wat? Hij begrijpt het toch niet_ , he wouldn’t understand.”

But Kurt thinks he did understand.

Did The Boyfriend just yell that Blaine thinks Kurt is good-looking? 

Judging by Blaine’s reaction, he might be right. But why did The Boyf- wait! _Broertje_?

Doesn’t _broertje_ mean little brother? 

Kurt wants to punch himself in the face.

“I- Are you guys Dutch?” Kurt decides to ask. Blaine goes white.

“Are you?” The Boyfriend, who might be The Brother asks.

“No, but I’m learning Dutch,” Kurt says and Blaine looks like he’s about to faint. 

“Oh, well we’re Americans, raised in the Netherlands,” The Brother, Cooper, says happily and he smiles, “Maybe my lil brother here can help you out. I mean, if you need some help. Right, Blaine?”

Blaine tries to say something, but he fails.

Kurt decides to do something daring. 

“And I think you’re very good-looking too.”

Cooper laughs.

 

* * *

 

 

The next time Kurt sees Blaine and Cooper, they don’t stay for long. Blaine’s been staring at Kurt non-stop, as if he’s waiting for him to be done with work. Kurt stares back. 

Unfortunately for them, Kurt shift won’t end in the next three hours. He’s about to tell him, but then Cooper clears his throat.

“You know, gay marriage has been legal in the Netherlands since 2001!” Cooper yells.

“Cooper!”

“ _Ik ben me alvast voor aan het bereiden voor mijn taken als getuige_ , little brother-” “Please stop.”

The two of them speak in rapid Dutch, and a new customer arrives, so Kurt doesn’t have time to keep up with them. 

After a while, they must’ve gotten the memo. “Sorry dude, but I kinda wanna sight see and spend time with my brother in the city,” Cooper says apologetically.

“It’s okay,” Kurt says, trying not to sound disappointed.

The two men gather their stuff and Kurt turns away. He doesn’t want to watch Blaine leave. Or better yet, he doesn’t want Blaine to see him so disappointed. 

He hears the door open.

And then they’re gone for the day.

Kurt turns back, but he’s surprised to see that Blaine forgot to throw away the cups. Kurt sighs and he moves to throw them away for them. 

He picks up Cooper’s cup and he’s annoyed to see it’s half full. Then he picks up Blaine’s.

And there’s something written on it.

 _Wil je met me uit?_ Yes or no? _Sms me._

And underneath, his number is written down. 

Kurt blushes. Since there’s no one waiting in line, Kurt immediately texts back.

_Ja._

**Author's Note:**

> The picture of the coffee shop is from Kapok cafe, Singapore. 
> 
> Translations, in order:
> 
> \- A children’s book
> 
> \- ... happy you decided to visit.
> 
> \- Blaine, little brother, don’t think I’d never visit you. You live in New York!
> 
> \- You’re probably only [visiting] to discover New York without having to pay a lot of money for a hotel.
> 
> \- Our parents didn’t raise us like that.
> 
> \- Shut up. (rudely)
> 
> \- So, that’s him?
> 
> \- Yes, that’s him. Don’t dare to do something stupid-
> 
> \- What? Like bothering other employees by asking them about your crush? That one girl was not in the mood. I pitied her.
> 
> \- He looks bored. Maybe this is your chance to talk to him.
> 
> \- I don’t know.
> 
> \- Blaine, don’t be so pessimistic. It’s overly clear you think he’s hot. (tacky)
> 
> \- What? Some people still say that.
> 
> \- It’s tacky. And he... he deserves better.
> 
> \- Oh god, he’s looking
> 
> \- My little brother thinks you’re really good-looking!
> 
> \- What? He wouldn’t understand.
> 
> \- I am already preparing myself for my best man duties.
> 
> \- Do you want to go out [on a date]? Yes or no? Text me.
> 
> \- Yes


End file.
